Directed by Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett. Written by Guy Busick and Stephen Shields. Starring Melissa Barrera, Dan Stevens, Kevin Durand, Kathryn Newton, Will Catlett, Angus Cloud, Giancarlo Esposito, Matthew Goode and Alisha Weir.
Plot: a group of kidnappers take the daughter of an infamous criminal, demanding millions for her safe return, unaware that they are the ones in real trouble.
The movie opens with six people kidnapping a little girl (Weir). And let's just get the introductions right out of the way. There is Frank (Stevens), a former detective turned criminal, who has really taken the reins on the entire job. Dean (Cloud) is the getaway driver with very psychopathic tendancies and it seems, a below average IQ. Sammy (Newton) is a thrill-seeking hacker who comes from money and only really commits crimes for the high of it all. Peter (Durand) is a former mob enforcer with honestly, little else going on. Rickles (Catlett) is a sniper in the Marines. And Joey (Barrera), who the story ends up revolving the most around, is an Army medic and recovering addict.
The problem starts almost immediately. See, these six people are strangers. They do not know each other's names even. So, Lambert (Esposito), the man in charge, gives them all Rat Pack member names. Very nice, even though not all of them make the connection. Lambert also places the six of them in a secluded mansion, explaining to them that they will have to keep Abigail there for 24 hours. They are to cover their faces when in the room with Abigail and she is to stay handcuffed as well. Of course, Joey, who is very arrogant, calls the rest of them out. She can read people and she knows who they are. Admittedly, she's correct about most of what she says, however, when Frank flips the script and calls her out on her shit, she gets all butt hurt and huffs away.
With their alliance pretty weak already, Joey goes to see Abigail and is rightfully upset when Abigail apologizes to Joey for what's about to happen to her. Only then do they really begin to wonder who her father is. Frank flies into Abigail's room and demands to know the truth. Upon hearing that her father is Kristof Lazaar, he decides that no amount of money is worth it and starts to leave. Apparently Lazaar is a well-known criminal and very dangerous. When the others that have heard of him also panic, the rest of them talk them into staying. They're confident they can pull this crime off and walk away rich. Not a smart choice there.
Not long after, they begin to die. They also discover that they cannot leave the house. It is locked up now, there's even a gate at the door and all the windows are blocked off. There are some twists that come into play. For one, Abigail has more reason to kill them than simply wanting to play with her food. For another, we wondered who was playing who in this house and while not completely surprised, we didn't have it all nailed down. And honestly, we didn't care if any of them made it out alive in the very beginning, but we did change our minds in the end.
All in all, the film was amazing. There is a lot of blood - tons. Because that's what happens when bodies explode. The cast is crazy good (I have a soft spot for Dan and Matthew, although I'd take Kevin home first if I'm being honest - LOL). The rules we all know of vampires don't all apply here, but that works in it's favor actually. The story is enjoyable. The script is fantastic. It's rewatchable and fun, not scary really, but funny as all get out. DJ partically liked how vampires had to learn how to do the really cool magical stuff. That knowledge wasn't just given to them as soon as they turned.
Lastly, we must applaud the effort put in to create a meaningful sentiment. The parent and child aspect that came into it was done so well and we were pleasantly surprised the story had such a brilliant message. Bravo all the way around.
Our score: 82.
"For what it's worth, you just have to show up."
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